Ephesians 6:10
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Strength is essential. It is especially necessary in the Christian life. In fact, when you consider what is required of the Christian, you realize that without strength, it’s hopeless.
Now, before you throw your hands up and say, “Well, then, what’s the use?” allow me to explain. If you or someone close to you were to make a list of your predominant characteristics, it might read something like this:
1. Is a follower, not a leader.
2. Is quiet, somewhat weak in difficult situations, blends in.
3. Has a nervous personality, tends to worry, no willpower.
Or, maybe on the opposite end of the spectrum, such a list might read:
1. Takes command in all situations, difficult or otherwise; a strong leadership presence.
2. Boisterous, fun-loving, always at ease in the largest or smallest crowds.
3. Confident, calm and collected; seems to have things “together;” determined.
Reading these lists, and accepting the idea that the Christian life takes strength, which person would be the one you would choose? It might surprise you to know that the second person described above is not the number one choice. Nor is the first person.
Confused yet? Well, both kinds of people in these descriptions have one thing in common, and that one thing is often the biggest disadvantage to the largest number of people. What is that one thing? Both describe human strength, and whether you have it in abundance or scarcity, human strength cannot be a substitute for spiritual strength.
What trips up most people is that they try to live the Christian life, make good choices, resist temptation, all by relying on human strength. The Apostle Paul knew this was impossible, which is why he told us what he did here in Ephesians 6:10. This is yet another restatement of Jesus’ words in Mark 10:27 -- But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible." and again in Luke 18:27 -- But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
In order to be what the Lord wants us to be, in order to live the successful and effective Christian life, we must have strength. But that strength must not come from ourselves; it must come from the Lord. Recently I heard a message on the radio that stated it very well (my apologies for not properly attributing the quote, because I can’t really remember; it was either from David Jeremiah or the late Adrian Rogers). The speaker said, “What you do doesn’t make you a sinner. You do what you do because you’re a sinner.”
Likewise, what you do doesn’t make you righteous. You become righteous because of something you cannot do for yourself. You stay righteous, you remain strong not because of those things you refrain from, but by relying on a strength from above that lives within the heart of the Christian.
As a child of God, you must choose to refuse sin entrance into your life. But you cannot simply resist temptations. As a being of flesh, the tendency is to give in and partake of sin. Relying on faulty strength is a recipe for disaster. But by depending upon the strength of the Lord and the power of His might, we are able to overcome. Still, it must be mentioned that this strength is not just to avoid falling into temptation. There is more.
Satan not only throws temptations into our way to knock us off the Lord’s path, but he also does his best to weaken our testimony, to make us experience depression, fear, and doubt. These fiery darts, so to speak, are hurled at us daily. If we rely on our own strength to “keep a stiff upper lip,” we can and ultimately will give into those things that render us ineffective as children of God.
In addition, it is not only our lives which are at stake. We play a vital part in the lives of those whom we encounter daily. It is vital that they see within us a determination and strength that goes beyond the physical.
Don’t be afraid to fail. We all make mistakes, we all have bad days. But each time you feel overwhelmed, or even prideful about your own power, remember the words of Ephesians 6:10. Remember that to make it through successfully, we must be strong in the Lord and in the power of HIS might. And since the strength, power and might comes from Him, we know that anything is possible.
NEXT TIME: Ephesians 6:11-12
© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.
Now, before you throw your hands up and say, “Well, then, what’s the use?” allow me to explain. If you or someone close to you were to make a list of your predominant characteristics, it might read something like this:
1. Is a follower, not a leader.
2. Is quiet, somewhat weak in difficult situations, blends in.
3. Has a nervous personality, tends to worry, no willpower.
Or, maybe on the opposite end of the spectrum, such a list might read:
1. Takes command in all situations, difficult or otherwise; a strong leadership presence.
2. Boisterous, fun-loving, always at ease in the largest or smallest crowds.
3. Confident, calm and collected; seems to have things “together;” determined.
Reading these lists, and accepting the idea that the Christian life takes strength, which person would be the one you would choose? It might surprise you to know that the second person described above is not the number one choice. Nor is the first person.
Confused yet? Well, both kinds of people in these descriptions have one thing in common, and that one thing is often the biggest disadvantage to the largest number of people. What is that one thing? Both describe human strength, and whether you have it in abundance or scarcity, human strength cannot be a substitute for spiritual strength.
What trips up most people is that they try to live the Christian life, make good choices, resist temptation, all by relying on human strength. The Apostle Paul knew this was impossible, which is why he told us what he did here in Ephesians 6:10. This is yet another restatement of Jesus’ words in Mark 10:27 -- But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible." and again in Luke 18:27 -- But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
In order to be what the Lord wants us to be, in order to live the successful and effective Christian life, we must have strength. But that strength must not come from ourselves; it must come from the Lord. Recently I heard a message on the radio that stated it very well (my apologies for not properly attributing the quote, because I can’t really remember; it was either from David Jeremiah or the late Adrian Rogers). The speaker said, “What you do doesn’t make you a sinner. You do what you do because you’re a sinner.”
Likewise, what you do doesn’t make you righteous. You become righteous because of something you cannot do for yourself. You stay righteous, you remain strong not because of those things you refrain from, but by relying on a strength from above that lives within the heart of the Christian.
As a child of God, you must choose to refuse sin entrance into your life. But you cannot simply resist temptations. As a being of flesh, the tendency is to give in and partake of sin. Relying on faulty strength is a recipe for disaster. But by depending upon the strength of the Lord and the power of His might, we are able to overcome. Still, it must be mentioned that this strength is not just to avoid falling into temptation. There is more.
Satan not only throws temptations into our way to knock us off the Lord’s path, but he also does his best to weaken our testimony, to make us experience depression, fear, and doubt. These fiery darts, so to speak, are hurled at us daily. If we rely on our own strength to “keep a stiff upper lip,” we can and ultimately will give into those things that render us ineffective as children of God.
In addition, it is not only our lives which are at stake. We play a vital part in the lives of those whom we encounter daily. It is vital that they see within us a determination and strength that goes beyond the physical.
Don’t be afraid to fail. We all make mistakes, we all have bad days. But each time you feel overwhelmed, or even prideful about your own power, remember the words of Ephesians 6:10. Remember that to make it through successfully, we must be strong in the Lord and in the power of HIS might. And since the strength, power and might comes from Him, we know that anything is possible.
NEXT TIME: Ephesians 6:11-12
© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.
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